The Money Show

The resignation of Robert Mugabe and the current race for power within the ANC have highlighted the importance of succession planning within the political landscape, but just how important is it for your business? Statistically, just 28% of succession plans end up being truly successful. On this week’s The Money Show with Bruce Whitfield, we considered the all-important questions you need to ask of yourself, and of your business, when creating a succession planning strategy for your business:

On Monday, 21 August, we spoke to Bruce Whitfield on The Money Show on Radio 702 and Cape Talk of that day’s R450 million sale of the Gupta media assets, ANN7 and The New Age, to Mzwanele “Jimmy” Manyi’s consortium, Lodidox.

The feature focused on the business valuation of media assets and made business owners aware of the importance of a correct business valuation in assessing their enterprise as an Asset of Valuewhen they put it on sale.

The feature also highlighted the methods of business valuation, the risks involved for the buyer and why they should be aware of these factors.

Building your business into an asset of value may include expanding through franchise opportunities. This week, onThe Money Show with Bruce Whitfield, we examined the key elements of what you should consider when assessing franchise opportunities:

Last night Pavlo and Bruce spoke about partnerships in business. So often these can make or break a small business. You can listen to the full show here.

So what are the benefits of the right partnership?

Shared risk

Two sets of eyes on the ball

Focus

Play your strengths

Double your resources and networks

So how should you approach finding a partner?

First, ask who your partner is. You'd be astounded at the number of clients who literally know nothing about their partner’s background, their approach to business, and their vision for the partnership. They rush into the relationship so quickly that they don’t even gather this fundamental knowledge about their partner.

Secondly, trust is essential. Talk is cheap. Do your research and check them out. Then understand their values. Know their approach to family because of time, how they view money because of investment direction, and what their purpose is because of vision.

And finally understand their skill set. These should ideally be different to yours. Every business has two main elements - promotion and delivery. Decide who will be accountable for which and who is best suited to which. It doesn't work if you both are doing the same or want to do the same and will be put pressure on the business and relationship.

So you think you've found the right partner? Pavlo suggests the following when entering into the partnership:

Date before you…marry Divorce is expensive and a waste of time, energy and potential.

Test for compatibility, capability, skill match

Structure the partnership Consider the following:

Roles and responsibilities

Delegation authorities

Contributions of resources

Rights to remunerations

Dissolution or exit strategy.

A buy-sell provisions

Non performance or delivery.

Non competing & confidentiality.

Sustain the partnership

Work harder than if you are on your own. You're accountable to someone other than yourself.

Welcome to 2018! A whole year ahead, to plan, implement, and prosper. I hope you had a great break, and were able to gain a little perspective on your business, while spending time with your family and friends. Looking ahead to the year, it’s time to look at ways you can build your business into a better, stronger, and bigger, machine this year. On this week’s The Money Show with Bruce Whitfield, we uncovered 5 key habits that’ll help you build your business in 2018:

Building a branch network for your business is still relevant and appropriate, despite the exponential growth opportunities offered through online platforms. But, expanding your business through physical branches can only achieve so much. Ideally, a click and brick strategy, that combines both physical and online expansion, is best for enabling and supporting business growth. On The Money Show with Bruce Whitfield, Pavlo Phitidis explained the all-important aspects of building a branch network for your business:

A constantly changing business environment demands that business owners develop new skills to ensure business growth. Recently, the Industrial Development Corporation provided a long explanation was provided as to how SME investment due diligences are performed. Due to the risky nature of SME investing and the unavailability of collateral, extremely detailed due diligence process is undertaken to minimize and manage risk.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been shocked by the news, as McKinsey, SAP, KPMG, Bell Pottinger and so many others, have hit the headlines with significant reputation-related crises. It only seems fitting then, that we chatted this week on The Money Show with Bruce Whitfield about building, or breaking, your brand, through reputation. As Warren Buffet’s 2014 memo to Berkshire management said:

“We can afford to lose money, even a lot of it. But we can’t afford to lose reputation, even a shred of it.

Here are a few actions you can take to both build and avoid hurting your brand.

Business accelerator programmes can be great catalysts for your growing business. Getting the right kind of help as a business owner sets you on a path towards growth and expansion. On this week’s The Money Show with Bruce Whitfield, Pavlo Phitidis updated us on the Nedbank Business Accelerators with 702 and Cape Talk:

Business owners and entrepreneurs often express the difficulty of accessing business funding as a key challenge. And yet, 87% of South African businesses are self-funded, with the majority of established businesses never pursuing funding. But, how can you self-fund your business through its lifecycle, and secure your retirement? On The Money Show with Bruce Whitfield, Pavlo Phitidis set down a plan for startup, acceleration, and exiting, business owners to get this right:

In 2008, determined entrepreneur, Karabo Songo, established Olive Communications. I first met Karabo during the 2013 Business Accelerators radio segment, and was happy to discover that, by 2014, he’d followed through on the advice I’ve offered him. This led to him snapping up the deal of a lifetime – a large advertising contract with a corporate insurer. Karabo’s business grew, exponentially, from this, but then the problems began. In this week’sThe Money Show with Bruce Whitfield, we chatted to Karabo, touching on just how bloody the sport of business can get, and the importance of risk management:

We may be living in a negative economic cycle right now, but it’s up to you to decide what your business growth rate should be. Despite the pundits, headlines, and uncertainty, you can grow your business during a recession. The headlines may tell a negative story, but my current experience serves as a reminder that every situation, no matter how negative, presents opportunities for your business. The news will tell you that foreign investment in South Africa is faltering, but we’re currently helping a South African small business negotiate a lucrative partnership with a foreign company. Take your eyes off the headlines and stop waiting for change to happen - choose your business growth rate and build your business towards it. On The Money Show with Bruce Whitfield, Pavlo Phitidis told us how to build for a 35% business growth rate, no matter what happens in the world around you:

After listening to Bruce's interview last night with Astral and all the news of the past few weeks from Brexit, to the upcoming US elections, to tightening credit, to low growth and poor paying corporates. It's very easy to find reasons not to succeed!

We’re in the midst of the 4th industrial revolution, with many new technologies quickly entering the business environment. Technology is evolving more quickly than most of us realise. These technologies, including the Internet of Things (IOT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics, and Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR & AR), are becoming increasingly accessible and affordable, effectively reshaping industries as they evolve. With each new technology that enters the market, new industries are also being built. The value chains governing these industries are shaping up fast, and positioning for success in them will determine your future success…or failure.

The five-year journey culminated in Juno burning 18 000lbs of rocket fuel to slow down from 150 000mph to the exact speed needed to orbit Jupiter.

On board, three Lego men and women made of space-grade aluminium hope to withstand the perilous radiation of Jupiter for 18 month before Juno crashes into Jupiter’s surface.

Pavlo shared his entrepreneurial insights from Juno's voyage on the Money show last night. Listen to the show here.

1. Juno will get closer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft ever has

Jupiter is surrounded by an intense "radiation belt."

The probe will circle the planet 37 times over 20 months, traveling between Jupiter and its radiation belt.

Juno, however, will come as close as 2,600 miles from the tops of Jupiter’s clouds.

GET CLOSER TO YOUR CUSTOMER TO BETTER UNDERSTAND NEEDS BOTH PHYSICAL NEEDS AND EMOTIONAL NEEDS

2. Data collected by Juno can help settle a debate about how planets, including Earth, are formed

Formation theories always begin with a collapsing cloud of gas and dust. Most of that material goes into forming a star, like our Sun, and the remainder can be used as building blocks for planets. Its not clear exactly how this is done: do planetary cores form first, and then accumulate their outer layers of gas just through gravitational attraction? Or do particularly large instabilities in that collapsing gas cloud collapse separately to form planets?

Learning more about the makeup of Jupiter’s core can help differentiate between these two scenarios

YOUR MARKETING MUST BE CUSTOMER NEED LED AND INNOVATION MUST BE DATA LED

3. Juno will attempt to measure the water in Jupiter’s atmosphere

Because Juno will be able to travel so closely to the planet, the probe will determine the composition, structure, and motions of the atmosphere below the cloud tops for the first time. In particular, the spacecraft will measure the water and ammonia in the gas giant’s atmosphere.

CONDUCT PROPER ANALYSIS ON YOUR CUSTOMERS OR PRODUCTS OR PEOPLE; WHO MAKES YOU MONEY AND WHO COSTS YOU MONEY

4. It’s Broke a Speed Record

Over the past few weeks, Jupiter’s gravity has been reeling Juno in, accelerating the spacecraft to breakneck speeds. By the time it arrives, Juno will be one of the fastest human-made objects in history, moving approximately 260,000 kilometers per hour relative to the Earth. That’s roughly ten times the top speed of the Space Shuttle.

When it enters Jupiter’s orbit on the evening of July 4th, Juno will shed some of its velocity in 35-minute main engine burn. But even after slowing down to a paltry 210,000 kilometers per hour, it’ll still be the fastest spacecraft ever to enter orbit around a planet. The reason for Juno’s incredible speed? Getting the spacecraft as close to Jupiter’s cloud tops as possible.

BUILD IN THE GRASS BUT SPRINT IN THE OPEN FIELDS WITH YOUR INNOVATION

5. Juno launched aboard an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on August 5th, 2011

BUILD OFF YOUR REFERENCE CLIENTS AND PIGGY BACK ON THE BIGGER ONES

6. It’s a Nuclear Fallout Shelter

A 180 kilogram titanium box roughly the size of an SUV trunk, the vault will reduce ambient radiation exposure approximately 800 fold. By the end of its mission in February 2018, it’ll have been dosed with the equivalent of 100 million dental x-rays.

PROTECT YOUR IP, STORE IN THE CLOUD, FORECAST WHAT CAN GO WRONG AND LIMIT YOUR DOWNSIDE RISK; NOT EASY FOR ENTREPRENEURS

7. It Runs on Renewables

Juno is the furthest solar powered mission ever conceived, built to run on the sun in an environment 25 times dimmer than the Earth. Even with state-of-the-art solar technology and energy-efficient electronics, the spacecraft needs to catch a lot of sunlight. Spanning 20 meters (66 feet), its three solar arrays contain approximately 18,000 solar cells in all. Total number of individual solar cells: 18,698.

INVEST FOR TOMORROW, ENSURE YOU HAVE RESERVES, IT’S A TURBULENT JOURNEY